British family fear IS attacker was their son

IANS | London
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March 23, 2016

Mohammed Rizwan Awan's family said this picture released by IS was him | Facebook

A British family said their missing son could be the suicide bomber of the Islamic State (IS), who is responsible for an attack in Iraq, BBC reported.

IS announced on Monday that the attack on Iraqi forces was carried out by a militant named as Abu Musa al-Britani, saying the militant used a car bomb to target a convoy of Iraqi army after it had left a military air base.

IS claimed that about 30 people were killed in the attack, however, the Iraqi authorities believed only the bomber died.

The Awan family, from West Yorkshire, said the photo of the suicide bomber released by IS on a social media account was their 27-year-old son, Mohammed Rizwan Awan, BBC reported.

The British family members recognised the photograph instantly and said they "knew in their hearts" it was him, according to BBC.

The young man left Britain last year, telling his family that he was going to visit Mecca in Saudi Arabia, but contact with him was lost since then. His family said letters he left indicated that he had no plan to return to Britain and planed to say in Saudi Arabia.

British government and Iraqi authorities have not confirmed his identity so far. BBC said the young man would be the latest suicide bomber to have come from West Yorkshire if his identity is authenticated.

A 17-year-old suicide bomber, Talha Asmal, who took part in attacks near an oil refinery south of Baiji in Iraq last year, was from West Yorkshire. While four men who carried out the July 7 London bombings in 2005, which killed 52 people, was also linked to this region.